In the West End neighborhood of Saint-Louis, Missouri, the life of 14-year-old Kathon Terrell Moore Jr. was tragically cut short on the afternoon of March 8, 2021. The young male was riding his bicycle in the 1100 block of Hodiamont Avenue at approximately 5:20 p.m. when he was approached by two individuals. What began as a potential transaction quickly devolved into a fatal act of violence.
Surveillance footage from the area captured the horrific sequence of events.
Kathon was forcefully pushed from his bicycle and thrown to the ground. As he lay defenseless, one of the assailants, later identified as James Jamel Blake, drew a gun and fired a single shot into the back of Kathon's head, killing him instantly. Following the shooting, Blake and his accomplice, Omarion Chantez Mays, stole marijuana from Kathon's pocket before fleeing the scene in Blake's white Mercedes. An 11-year-old friend of Kathon's, who was with him just before the attack, rode away to get help but returned to find his friend already deceased. This young witness was later instrumental in identifying Mays.
More than three years after the incident, arrests were made and charges were filed. In April 2024, a grand jury indicted James Jamel Blake and Omarion Chantez Mays. Blake was charged with first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, and two counts of armed criminal action. Mays, who was 16 at the time of the crime, faced charges of second-degree murder, first-degree robbery, and two counts of armed criminal action. Mays was taken into custody, while Blake was reported to be hiding in the Atlanta area before his eventual capture.
Following a three-day trial, a St. Louis jury convicted James Blake in June 2025. The conviction was for second-degree murder, second-degree robbery, and two counts of armed criminal action, based on evidence from surveillance video and eyewitness testimony. In September 2025, Blake, then 24, was sentenced to 21 years in prison. A judge followed the jury's recommendation of 18 years for the murder charge and a consecutive three-year term for armed criminal action, with other sentences to run concurrently. During the sentencing, Kathon's grandmother expressed that she forgave Blake and prayed he would become a better person. The case against Omarion Mays is still pending in the St. Louis Circuit Court.
